Judge blocks night deer hunting for two weeks

A federal judge on Wednesday blocked Wisconsin's Chippewa tribes from hunting deer at night for at least the next two weeks as the state and the tribes gear up for what promises to be a blistering legal fight.

U.S. District Judge Barbara Crabb issued the surprise ruling during what was scheduled as a telephone status conference with state and tribal attorneys, state Department of Natural Resources attorney Quinn Williams told The Associated Press.

The judge said the DNR can enforce its long-standing ban on night deer hunting until Dec. 12, when the tribes and the state are due back in court for a hearing.

"It's a good result because it allows us to kind of take a pause and say, 'Hey, let's fully evaluate this activity before we allow it or don't allow it,'" Williams said.

Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission, which oversees the Chippewa's off-reservation rights, quietly authorized tribal hunters last week to go after deer after dark across the so-called ceded territory, a 22,400-acre swath of northern Wisconsin the tribes handed over to the federal government in the 19th century.

The move has sparked a bitter squabble with the DNR, which has banned night deer hunting for decades out of safety concerns. The tribes have argued night deer hunting must be safe since the state authorized hunters to go after wolves this fall. On Tuesday they asked Crabb to issue a temporary injunction blocking the DNR from enforcing the ban on tribal hunters.

GLIFWC spokeswoman Sue Erickson said the commission will comply with Crabb's decision Wednesday and plans to issue an order rescinding the night deer hunting authorization until Dec. 12. Erickson said no hunters had requested a night permit as of Wednesday afternoon.

"It would have been very nice for the tribal members to be able to exercise their rights during that time," she said. "It deprives them of that opportunity. But we are more than happy to cooperate with the court."